emed to the
Tribe the most portentous sign of all--these blood-thirsty beasts
appeared to have lost much of their ancient hostility to Man. They
were all well fed, of course, their accustomed prey being now so
abundant that they had little more to do than put forth an armed paw
and seize it. But they all seemed uneasy and half-cowed, as if weighed
down by a menace which they did not know how to face. When a man
confronted them, the fiercest of them made way with a deprecating air,
as if to say that they had troubles enough on their minds.

* * * * *

Bawr, the Chief, and Grom, his right hand and his counselor, stood
upon the bare green ridge above the Cave-mouth, and stared down
anxiously upon the sun-drenched plain. Of old it had taken keen eyes
to discern the varied life which populated its bamboo-thickets and
cane-choked marshes. Now it was as thronged as the home pastures of a
cattle-farm. Here and there a battle raged between such small-brained
brutes as the white rhinoceros and the cone-horned monster; but for
the most part there was an apprehensive sort of truce, the different
kinds of beasts keeping as far as possible to themselves.

Further out in the plain pastured a herd of gigantic creatures such as
neither Bawr nor Grom had ever seen before. A pair of rhinoceros
looked like pygmies beside them. They were both tall and massive, of a
dark mud-color, with colossal heads, no necks whatever, huge ears that
flapped like wings, immensely long, up-curving tusks of gleaming
yellow--mighty enough to carry a bison cradled in their curve--and it
seemed to the astonished watchers on the ridge that from the snout of
each monster grew a great snake, which reared itself into the air, and
waved terribly, and pulled down the tops of trees for the monster's
food.

It was the Cave Man's first view of the Mammoth--which had not yet
developed the shaggy coat it was later to grow on the cold sub-Artic
plains.

Recovering at length from his amazement, Bawr remarked:

"They seem to have two tails, those new beasts--a little tail behind,
in the usual place, and a very big tail in front, which they use as a
hand. They are very many, and very terrible. Do you think it is they
who are driving all these other beasts upon us to overwhelm us?"

Grom thought long before replying.

"No," said he, "they are not flesh-eaters. See! They do not heed the
other beasts. They eat trees. And they,